5-Letter Words With AN in the Middle

100 words

The AN pattern sits at the heart of English, appearing in words from the mundane to the exotic. This collection spans everyday vocabulary alongside borrowings from Japanese, Swahili, and beyond—each offering distinct tactical value for word game players.

Pattern Guide

Word recommendations for board games.

Word Games

High-value words for board games

Top 5-Letter Words

KANZU

(Swahili) a long garment (usually white) with long sleeves; worn by men in East Africa

18 pts
HAZAN

the official of a synagogue who conducts the liturgical part of the service and sings or chants the prayers intended to be performed as solos

17 pts
KANJI
16 pts
ZAMAN

large ornamental tropical American tree with bipinnate leaves and globose clusters of flowers with crimson stamens and seed pods that are eaten by cattle

16 pts
HANKY

a square piece of cloth used for wiping the eyes or nose or as a costume accessory

15 pts
JAWAN

(India) a private soldier or male constable

15 pts
XYLAN
15 pts
AXMAN
14 pts

KANZU leads both games but scores 20 in Words With Friends versus 18 in Scrabble. The J-words show the real split: KANJI jumps from 16 to 19 points in WWF, while BANJO and JAPAN each gain 3 points thanks to WWF's boosted J value. BAJAN becomes surprisingly competitive in WWF at 18 points, making Caribbean vocabulary worth memorizing for that format specifically.

Wordle

5-letter words for daily puzzles

Good Starters (E, A, R, S, T)

MEANSStarter

considerable capital (wealth or income)

STANDStarter

put up with something or somebody unpleasant

MEANTStarter
PANTSStarter

(used in the plural) underpants worn by women

Common Words (likely answers)

THANKCommon

express gratitude or show appreciation to

WOMANCommon

a human female employed to do housework

WANNACommon
HANDSCommon

the force of workers available

STAND and MEANT offer solid coverage, each testing common consonants alongside the AN core. MEANS adds the high-frequency S while checking a second vowel position.

Hidden Gems

Rare but valid words to surprise opponents

CANNA

any plant of the genus Canna having large sheathing leaves and clusters of large showy flowers

MANIS

type genus of the Manidae

PAEAN

a formal expression of praise

RANGY

tall and thin and having long slender limbs

PAEAN means a formal expression of praise—think victory hymns or tributes. Beyond its literary usefulness, it's a vowel-heavy five-letter word that clears four of them in one play, making it a surprisingly practical Wordle guess when you've confirmed the A.

Popular crossword answers

Words frequently used in crossword puzzles with common clues.

More "AN" Pages

Browse words by longer letter combinations starting with "AN".